We continue to discover these potentially hazardous asteroids - sometimes only days before they make their close approaches to Earth

Slooh's technical and research director Paul Cox

The robotic telescope service said their flagship observatory in the Canary Islands was iced over and was unable to be used for the 2000 EM26 viewing.

During a one hour webcast, Slooh's technical and research director Paul Cox said: "We continue to discover these potentially hazardous asteroids - sometimes only days before they make their close approaches to Earth.

"We need to find them before they find us."

It comes more than a year after another asteroid exploded over Chelyabinsk in Russia injuring 1,200 people in the region.

It comes more than a year after another asteroid exploded over Chelyabinsk in Russia [YOUTUBE]

The asteroid explosion on February 15 2013 also shattered windows and damaged buildings in the vicinity.

Chelyabinsk officials wanted to mark the incident's anniversary by giving a piece of meteorite to each athlete who won a medal on Saturday at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics.

However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at the last minute said it could be done only after the games and separately.